The Speaker
The poem is narrated in the first person. The speaker is unnamed, and one of the few things we know about her is that she is likely a woman. This is evident in her garments (an "Apron" and a "Boddice"), the feminine image of her as a dewdrop on a dandelion sleeve, and her role as an object of male desire and aggression. In addition, we know that she is likely young and innocent. We see this in her childlike daydreams about mermaids and about the large frigates watching her and imagining her as a tiny mouse. We also see this in her assertion that "no Man moved Me" until that day, implying that she had never had romantic or sexual experiences up until that point.
The Sea
The Sea, personified as a human man, is the other primary character in this poem. The speaker refers to the Sea using male pronouns ("he" and "his"), and she essentially identifies the Sea as a man when she says "But no Man moved Me - till the Tide." The Sea quickly becomes an aggressor in the poem, moving up the speaker's body and chasing her as she runs away. Yet in spite of this aggression, he is not painted as a brute, but a gentleman. The poem refers to his "Silver Heel" and notes that he gives up the chase at the edge of the town, and even bows to her, as if attempting to keep up the appearance of civility.
